This invention relates to plastic-bonded explosives and more particularly to energetic plasticizers for plastic-bonded explosives.
Examples of energetic plasticizers which are currently used in plastic-bonded explosives (PBXs) are bis(2-fluoro-2,2-dinitroethyl)formal (FEFO), butanetriol trinitrate (BTTN), and trimethylolethane trinitrate (TMETN). These compounds have various disadvantages which include limited thermal stability (BTTN, TMETN), high volatility (FEFO), toxicity (FEFO), and high melting point (FEFO). In addition, these energetic plasticizers are not miscible with fluoropolymers and can therefore not be used with these desirable new binder materials for PBXs.